Cooking

Outdoor cooking experiments—primarily on my Big Green Egg and new Traeger grill—are documented here. Posts recount brisket attempts, sous‑vide pork butt sessions and holiday tenderloin traditions, with candid notes on smoke, temperature and results.

November 24, 2022

Turkey check mid cook. So far so good. Going faster than expected.

Golden-brown roasted turkey seasoned with herbs resting on a rack in a blue roasting pan on a gas stovetop.

November 10, 2022

We bottled Sweet Thing Honey tonight getting final preparations for our Things 4 Good Fall Fundraiser this weekend! Labels go on tomorrow.

Hands filling a small bear-shaped glass jar with honey from a white plastic bottling bucket gate valve on a wooden shelf.

Roughly 30 bear-shaped plastic bottles filled with golden honey, capped in black lids, arranged on a wooden table.

Rows of bear-shaped honey bottles with black caps lined up on a decorated wooden table, one bear in sharp focus in the foreground.

September 17, 2022

First time running the Big Green Egg at our new house. Sous Vides beef tenderloin getting a finish on the fire. 🔥

Two sous vide beef tenderloins finishing on the grill grates of a Big Green Egg kamado smoker on a backyard patio.

September 2, 2022

Starting three pork butts for 18 hour cook in the Sous Vides! Finish smoke tomorrow. 🐖💧🔥

Three vacuum-sealed pork butts submerged in a clear sous vide container with an immersion circulator clipped to the side.

First Smashburgers of 2022! Delicious. 🍔

Toasted hamburger buns face-down on a large outdoor flat-top griddle, with a lake and playground set visible in the background.

Nine smashburgers topped with melted American cheese cooking on a flat-top griddle outdoors, with a grassy lakeside yard and playground slide in the background.

Smashburger with melted cheese on a brioche bun, side salad, and chips on a fish-print plate at a lakeside picnic table with a Steel Toe Brewing Session Ale can nearby.

Tammy made our traditional Pi Day dinner: homemade Chicken Pot Pie and Peanut Butter Pie! 🥧

See Pi Day Collection.

Golden-brown homemade chicken pot pie with steam vents resting in a skillet on a gas stovetop in a white kitchen.

Peanut butter pie with smooth chocolate ganache topping in a glass pie dish on a white kitchen counter

December 31, 2021

Time for our traditional New Years Eve fondue dinner.

Cuisinart pot of melted cheese fondue on a burner stand beside a cutting board with cubed bread pieces

December 24, 2021

My Grandma Rose always made Krumkake. My Mom makes the Krumkake now. I took my first attempt making it tonight. Holiday traditions.

Krumkake being made on a electric iron, with rolled cones cooling on a baking sheet, batter in a mixing bowl, and a rolling cone tool nearby.

Tray of freshly made krumkake cones stacked in rows on a baking sheet, with a mixing bowl and decorative dish in the background.

December 24, 2021

Our tradition to have steaks on the Big Green Egg on Christmas Eve.

Festive dining table set for Christmas Eve with Santa-themed plates, purple Advent candles, and a German Christmas pyramid centerpiece.

Big Green Egg kamado grill smoking at night, mounted in a metal outdoor kitchen cart with tongs resting on the side counter.

December 19, 2021

“Bottom starting” my Big Green Egg to thaw the gasket and get it open for Beef Tenderloin in a couple of hours. ❄️🔥

Big Green Egg ceramic kamado grill smoking on a snowy winter day, set in an outdoor kitchen table in a suburban backyard.